Alex Palou delivered another clinical blow to the 2025 INDYCAR field on Sunday, stretching every drop of fuel in his No. 10 Chip Ganassi-run Honda to claim a sixth win in nine races. As others faltered under pressure or were pitted too late, it was Palou, ever the strategist, who emerged victorious once more, this time at Road America.
It wasn’t straightforward. With soaring track temps and five cautions in the opening 30 laps, the XPEL Grand Prix became a war of strategy, tyre management, and fuel conservation. Palou made his final stop on Lap 40, two laps after teammate Scott Dixon, then tucked into his draft and made the numbers work.
Reflecting on the result, Palou called it “a wild one,” admitting there were moments he thought they’d lost too many positions. He credited his team’s clever pit strategy and Honda’s fuel economy for helping them pull off the win.
Strategy beats speed
Dixon looked to be in control, aiming to make a final stint of 17 laps stick a reach even by his standards. But with no cautions from Lap 31 onward, the fuel window closed hard. He was forced to pit with three to go, opening the door for Palou to seize control on Lap 53.
Behind him, Felix Rosenqvist pushed hard in the No. 60 Meyer Shank Honda, finally released from fuel saving and charging in the closing laps. He trimmed the gap to just over two seconds and clocked the fastest lap of the race, but time ran out before he could mount a serious challenge.
Rosenqvist said the team had a strong pace throughout, and after some recent bad luck, he was glad to capitalise finally. “It kept shifting all race positions, pace, everything. Happy to be back on the podium.”
Santino Ferrucci grabbed third in the AJ Foyt Chevrolet, nursing fuel to the line for his fourth consecutive top-five. Kyle Kirkwood came home fourth, continuing his hot streak after back-to-back wins, while Marcus Armstrong scored a season-best fifth as Meyer Shank placed both cars in the top five for the first time this year.
Chaos early, calculation late
What started as a messy, stop-start affair eventually turned into a high-stakes chess match. The early yellows fractured the field, with 348 on-track passes, 345 of them for the position, making it the second-most overtaken race in Road America INDYCAR history.
Among the casualties of the late fuel crunch was Alexander Rossi, who ran in podium contention before being forced to pit on Lap 51. Louis Foster, who started from pole, tied his best-ever INDYCAR result in 11th after fading late.
The season now passes halfway, and only two drivers, Palou and Kirkwood, have stood atop the podium all year. The last time such dominance was seen this deep into a campaign? 1980, when Bobby Unser and Johnny Rutherford took the opening nine.
Palou now leads the championship by 93 points over Kirkwood, with eight rounds left to run. Dixon remains third in the standings but is now winless in his last 15 starts. Honda, meanwhile, has powered all nine winners so far in 2025, continuing its stranglehold over the competition.
What’s next
INDYCAR returns in two weeks’ time for the Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio on Sunday, July 6. Palou won there in 2023. On current form, few would bet against him doing it again.